Roman Governor - Late Imperial Governors

Late Imperial Governors

The provincial governors were the most important officials in the Roman administration for it was they who were responsible for tax collection, justice in the first instance and public order in the first instance. They received, from the Prefectures, the tax demands three times a year, which they circulated to the municipalities.

Under the Dominate, i.e. the Late Roman Empire, the Roman Emperor Diocletian began in AD 293 reforms of the provincial administration that were completed under the Emperor Constantine the Great in 318. Diocletian set up 12 dioceses (later several were split; see under Roman province), originally two to four for each of the four co-emperors under the short-lived Tetrarchy (two senior Augusti, each above a Caesar), each governed by a Vicarius who substituted for or acted on behalf of the praetorian prefect. Each diocese comprised several Roman provinces, now rather known as eparchy, each under the authority of a provincial governor (see above), of various ranks and carrying a series of titles, including republican relics such as Proconsul and novelties such as Corrector provinciae, Moderator Provinciae, Praeses provinciae Although the Vicarius's authority was supreme within his diocese, he was under the authoirty of Praetorian Prefect whose power he partook of (see below) or the Emperor himself.

Diocletian began and Constantine completely removed military command from the governors (and some related competences. In those provinces where soldiers were stationed, the dux (Latin for leader) commanded border military units. Some duces commanded units in several provinces: they were watched by the diocesan vicars. Field units were commanded by a Comes (companion from which we get count) and later by supreme military commanders, the magistri militum (masters of the soldiers).

Emperor Constantine completed Diocletian's reforms and organized the Roman Empire into four pretorian prefectures late in his reign, actually the former territorial circumscriptions of the former four imperial tetrarchs to which each praetorian prefect had acted as chief of staff: the Prefecture of the Gauls, the Prefecture of Italy and Africa, the Prefecture of Illyricum, and the Prefecture of Oriens, with each administrated by an imperially appointed Praetorian prefect. The Prefect of each Prefecture was the highest civilian officer, being subordinate only to the Emperor(s) Prefects were the superiors of the vicars and governors. He was the chief appallate judge, head of the administration of the prefecture, chief finance officer and chief tax collector (the collection was actually done at municipal and village levels).

• A list of the provinces within the dioceses and the dioceses within the prefectures can be found on the Roman provinces page.